Apple TV+’s Low Price Is Hurting Netflix and Roku Shares. Should It?

Apple TV+’s low price point may be the biggest surprise from the company’s big product event on Tuesday. But the pricing may not be as good a bargain as it seems.

Apple
(ticker: AAPL) announced new details on its forthcoming paid services such as Apple TV+ (video subscription) and Apple Arcade (gaming subscription), along with its new iPhone lineup.

The video service will debut on Nov. 1 in more than 100 countries for $4.99 a month. In addition, new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, iPod Touch or Mac owners will get one year of Apple TV+ free.

Shares of
Netflix
(NFLX) and
Roku
(ROKU) fell following the Apple TV+ news. Netflix was down 3.3% to $284.54 Tuesday afternoon and Roku slid 11.9% to $141.91. Apple’s stock was up 0.2% to $214.53. The
S&P 500
was down 0.4%.

Netflix declined to comment on the Apple TV+ announcement. Roku didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

While the $4.99 a month price for Apple TV+ looks appealing, it might not be so attractive once consumers compare the number of shows the service will offer versus the competition. Apple’s news release listed 9 shows that will be offered at the Nov. 1 Apple TV+ launch. The company didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the total number of shows.

But the number will likely pale in comparison with its competitors. Netflix offers about 5,800 shows and movies, according to Flixable. Netflix’s price points start at $8.99 a month for its basic plan and $12.99 a month for its high-definition service.

Disney+, which will debut on Nov. 12 for $6.99 a month, will have about 7,500 TV episodes and more than 500 movies in its first year, according to
Disney
’s (DIS) April investor day.

Roku also offers free on-demand, ad-supported content on its Roku Channel, which has more than 10,000 free movies and TV shows. Apple said TV+ will be available on the Roku platform in the future.

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